H1-KEY: Last News

H1-KEY, this week’s star of The Cover on NME, have shared an exclusive playlist to accompany the story’s launch.This week (June 17), the South Korean quartet become the first-ever K-pop girl group to grace The Cover, a renewal of NME’s commitment to supporting emerging talent across the globe on a weekly basis. Every week, a rising artist will feature on The Cover – you can read the profile of H1-KEY here, written by Gladys Yeo and featuring photography by Sewon Jun.To accompany The Cover, H1-KEY have curated an exclusive playlist for NME, knowingly titled ‘Low-key Bops, High-key on Repeat’.

H1-KEY have officially released their third mini-album ‘Love or Hate’, along with a music video for title track ‘Let It Burn’.Both the record and accompanying visual were released on June 19 at 6pm KST. The latter features the four members of H1-KEY as rebellious students of a high school, as they revel in the nostalgic joys of being teenagers while embracing their defiant spirit.The song itself is “characterised by rebellious and straightforward lyrics different from past H1-KEY songs”, they said in a press conference for the release.

“I’m happy and I’m gon’ get up / Sweet and bitter memories / With everything behind, just look forward, I am glad to take a step ahead,” they belt on the song’s affecting chorus.The ongoing ‘H1-KEYnote’ project started with the release of the single ‘Thinkin’ About You’ late last month, which sports a similar style to ‘Deeper’ in terms of vocal emphasis. It remains unclear if both singles will appear on a larger body of work in the near future.Comprising Seoi, Riina, Hwiseo and Yel, H1-KEY made their official debut in early 2022 with the single album ‘Athletic Girl’, and have released one other single album and two mini-albums in the time since.

K-pop girl group H1-KEY and Young K have collaborated for a special performance of ‘Rose Blossom’.During the September 8 episode of late-night South Korean music talk show The Seasons: Long Day, Long Night with AKMU, rookie girl group H1-KEY made a guest appearance to perform their January single ‘Rose Blossom’ with Day6 member singer Young K, who penned the track.Their performance remained largely true to the original ‘Rose Blossom’, with its instrumental being performed by a live band. However, Young K took over several lines in the song and harmonised with the H1-KEY members during the special performance.“I’m a rose among the concrete / Until this bleak city is fills up with colour / I’ll keep my head up until the very end / Until they get drunk off my scent and smile,” they sing in the chorus.Both Young K and H1-KEY have recently released new music, with the former dropping his first solo studio album ‘Letters With Notes’ and its lead single ‘nothing but’ last week.Meanwhile, the girl group released their second mini-album ‘Seoul Dreaming’ in late-August.

K-pop girl group H1-KEY have made a comeback with their new mini-album ‘Seoul Dreaming’ and its title track ‘SEOUL (Such a Beautiful City)’.In the visual for ‘SEOUL (Such a Beautiful City)’, the quartet connect to the rest of the city through soundwaves, before heading out to roam the streets as confetti falls from the sky. Later, H1-KEY sit on a rooftop together admiring the cityscape at night.“Such a beautiful city / Everything shines like it’s enchanted / I dance along with those lights (I dream) / In the bustling streets / Until everyone looks at me / I keep singing endlessly,” they sing in the synth-filled chorus.The girl group’s second mini-album ‘Seoul Dreaming’ also includes the pre-release single ‘Time to Shine’, which they released last week alongside its own music video.

H1-KEY, has parted ways with the K-pop act only five months after their debut.Grandline Group, the agency behind H1-KEY, announced in a statement to South Korean media outlet Wikitree today (May 25) that Sitala will be leaving the K-pop girl group due to undisclosed “personal reasons”, following discussions with the singer.“After speaking at length with the artist and the members of H1-KEY and considering the situation in its totality, we have come to this decision,” Grandline Group said, as translated by Koreaboo. “Most of all, we would like to apologise to the fans for the sudden news.”Last year, Sitala drew flak online over her family’s alleged involvement in the 2014 political crisis in Thailand.